Feature request: Native /voice push-to-talk voice mode in Copilot CLI
Summary
Add a built-in voice input mode to the Copilot CLI, toggled with a /voice slash command, that lets users dictate prompts hands-free (push-to-talk) directly in the terminal. Speech would be transcribed into the prompt input.
Motivation
There is currently no native voice/speech-to-text capability in Copilot CLI. Today the only option is OS-level dictation (e.g. Win+H on Windows) piped/typed into the prompt, which is clunky and disconnected from the CLI workflow.
Both major points of comparison already ship a voice experience:
- Claude Code added a built-in Voice Mode (
/voice to toggle) in ~March 2026. It uses push-to-talk: hold the space bar to speak, release to send; transcription is streamed into the prompt input and is free / does not count against rate limits. (Referenced in the official Claude Code changelog v2.1.160: "Fixed voice mode failing to connect when the project directory or branch name contains non-ASCII or special characters.")
- GitHub Copilot in VS Code already supports voice via the official VS Code Speech extension (
ms-vscode.vscode-speech) — hold-to-speak microphone, a "Hey Code" voice trigger, and optional TTS read-back.
The CLI is the notable gap: Copilot has voice in the editor but not in the terminal.
Proposed behavior
/voice toggles voice mode on/off.- Push-to-talk (e.g. hold a key to record, release to transcribe and insert into the prompt input).
- Transcribed text lands in the editable prompt input so the user can review/correct before sending.
- Clear on-screen indicator when recording / transcribing.
- Sensible privacy posture (not always-listening; explicit push-to-talk).
Prior art
- Claude Code Voice Mode (
/voice, push-to-talk via space bar).
- VS Code Speech extension for Copilot Chat (hold-to-speak, "Hey Code").
Notes
No existing issue requesting this was found when searching the repo for voice, speech, microphone, dictation, and audio.
Feature request: Native
/voicepush-to-talk voice mode in Copilot CLISummary
Add a built-in voice input mode to the Copilot CLI, toggled with a
/voiceslash command, that lets users dictate prompts hands-free (push-to-talk) directly in the terminal. Speech would be transcribed into the prompt input.Motivation
There is currently no native voice/speech-to-text capability in Copilot CLI. Today the only option is OS-level dictation (e.g. Win+H on Windows) piped/typed into the prompt, which is clunky and disconnected from the CLI workflow.
Both major points of comparison already ship a voice experience:
/voiceto toggle) in ~March 2026. It uses push-to-talk: hold the space bar to speak, release to send; transcription is streamed into the prompt input and is free / does not count against rate limits. (Referenced in the official Claude Code changelog v2.1.160: "Fixed voice mode failing to connect when the project directory or branch name contains non-ASCII or special characters.")ms-vscode.vscode-speech) — hold-to-speak microphone, a "Hey Code" voice trigger, and optional TTS read-back.The CLI is the notable gap: Copilot has voice in the editor but not in the terminal.
Proposed behavior
/voicetoggles voice mode on/off.Prior art
/voice, push-to-talk via space bar).Notes
No existing issue requesting this was found when searching the repo for
voice,speech,microphone,dictation, andaudio.